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BL 13.5-inch Mk V naval gun
Mark V guns of the battleship |origin= |type=Naval gun |is_ranged=yes |is_artillery=yes |is_UK=yes |service=1912 - 1940s (as railway gun) |used_by= |wars=World War I World War II |designer= Vickers |design_date=1909 |manufacturer= |unit_cost= |production_date= |number= |variants=Mk V(L) Mk V(H) Mk VI |weight= |length= |part_length=Bore (45 cal) |width= |height= |crew= |caliber= |cartridge=H: L: HE, APThe gun had a Heavy (H) shell of and a Light (L) shell of . Some guns were designated H or L to designated they were intended for the heavy or light shell. |action= |rate= |velocity=H: L: |range= |max_range=H: at 20° L: at 20° H: at 40° (World War II railway gun, with Super Charge) |feed= |sights= |breech= |recoil= |carriage= |elevation=Naval: 0° - 20° Railway: 0° - 40° |traverse= }} The 'BL 13.5 inch Mk V gun'Mk V = Mark 5. Britain used Roman numerals to identify Marks (models) of ordnance until after World War II. This was the fifth model of British 13.5 inch gun was a British heavy naval gun, introduced in 1912 as the main armament for the new super-dreadnought battleships of the . The calibre was 13.5 inches (343 mm) and the barrels were 45 calibres long i.e. 607.5 inches (15.43 m). The guns were greatly superior to the earlier 13.5-inch (30-calibre) Mk I to Mk IV guns used on the , and es completed between 1888 and 1896. Characteristics in June 1916 after damage at the Battle of Jutland. The turret mounted two Mark V guns.]] The gun weighed approximately 168,000 lb (76 tonnes) (excluding the breech), and in its original form fired a 1,250 lb (567 kg) armour-piercing capped (APC) or high-explosive (HE) round a distance of 23,800 yards (21,800 m) at a 20-degree elevation.navweaps.com - 13.5-in/45 Mark V Variants Due to the excellent characteristics of the gun, it was decided to increase the weight of shell to 1,400 lb (635 kg), with an increased firing charge to achieve about the same range. The gun firing the lighter shell was designated Mark V(L) (for "light") by the Royal Navy, and the 1,400 lb version Mark V(H) (for "heavy"). A very similar 1,400 lb gun, designed for the , received the designation Mark VI when the ship was requisitioned by the British government after the outbreak of the First World War, eventually being commissioned as .navweaps.com - 13.5-in/45 Mark VI Railway guns Three BL 13.5 inch /45 Mark V guns, named Gladiator, Piece Maker and Scene Shifter, were mounted on railway chassis during World War II for use as railway guns.Dale Clarke. "British Artillery 1914-19. Heavy Artillery". Osprey Publishing, London, 2005. Pages 41-42 Scene Shifter re-used a railway truck which had carried a BL 14 inch Railway Gun in the First World War. In 1940 these guns were issued to the Royal Marine Siege Regiment at Dover in Kent to bombard German batteries and shipping in the Calais area.http://www.doverpages.co.uk/big_guns.htm The Big Guns At Dover WW2 World War Two They could be stored in railway tunnels when not in use to protect them from attack. Service British warships with the BL 13.5 inch /45 gun; * s: Mark V(L) * battleships of 1911: Mark V(H) * s: Mark V(H) * , a battleship: Mark VI * s: Mark V(L) * , a battlecruiser : Mark V(H) * , a battlecruiser : Mark V(H) See also * 15 inch (381 mm) /42 calibre Mark I naval gun British successor * List of naval guns Weapons of comparable role, performance and era * 340mm/45 Modèle 1912 gun French equivalent Notes References * Tony DiGiulian, British 13.5"/45 (34.3 cm) Mark V(L) 13.5"/45 (34.3 cm) Mark V(H) External links * Vickers Photographic Archives * British 13.5"/45 (34.3 cm) Mark V(L) 13.5"/45 (34.3 cm) Mark V(H) at navweaps.com Category:Naval guns of the United Kingdom Category:World War I naval weapons of the United Kingdom Category:World War II artillery of the United Kingdom Category:Railway guns Category:Vickers Category:340 mm artillery